Urgent: Gaza Families Evacuation Appeal | Help Us Support Our Community Members Families Needing Support To Evacuate

as'salaamu alaykum,

As the violence continues to escalate in Gaza, many are making the difficult decision to evacuate with their families from Rafah into Egypt.  We have many members of our community whose close friends and family members are in need of support to evacuate now.  Below are some campaigns that we can confirm are legitimate and will go towards helping families with children evacuate in pursuit of safety.  Be sure to give what you can to help get people to safety.

Contributions made will be eligible for zakat but are not tax-deductible. 

1. Lina Barkawi, NYU Class of 2022, is raising funds at https://www.gofundme.com/f/seeking-refuge-help-noors-family-evacuate-gaza for her friend Noor and her family evacuate.  Noor lost her husband, her home, and her job as a teacher and is now a single mother tying to get her family to safety. You can find more information on their situation and donate to help them evacuate by clicking here.
    
2. Shaheen Hasan, a member of our community, is raising funds at https://www.gofundme.com/f/reham-and-brothers-leave-gaza-and-restart-their-lives with her friend Jose (a former journalist that lived in Gaza)  to support the evacuation of Reham and her family in Gaza, who are all in the South due their homes being destroyed in airstrikes.  Reham's sister also has been diagnosed with lukemia and is need of medical treatment.  You can find more information on their situation and donate to help them evacuate by clicking here.
    
3. Dr. Bader and Mona El-Ghussein, members of our community, are raising funds at https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-my-family-flee-genocide for their family members, including their one year old niece.  Their family members have said "For months now, we have endured the relentless onslaught of bombings, living each day in fear and uncertainty. Our home lies in ruins, and we are forced to roam from one shelter to another, struggling to find even the most basic necessities for survival in Gaza's war-torn landscape." You can find more information on their situation and donate to help them evacuate by clicking here.
    
4. Huriyyah Chaudhry, a member of our community, is raising funds at https://www.gofundme.com/f/evacuating-my-relatives-from-gaza-to-safety for her friend Lana's family made up of elders and children, all of whom are facing malnutrition amongst many other challenges.  You can find more information on their situation and donate to help them evacuate by clicking here.

Please do give whatever you can. Whether it's $1, $5 ... $5000, every bit will make a difference. And please keep our sisters and brothers in Gaza in your thoughts and prayers. May Allah reward you for your generosity and give you and your loved ones only the best in this world and in the next. Ameen.

- Khalid
                                                           
Imam Khalid Latif
University Chaplain  |  Global Spiritual Life at NYU 
Executive Director  |  The Islamic Center at NYU 
Senior Fellow & Co-Founder  |  Of Many Institute for Multifaith Leadership
Adjunct Assistant Professor  | NYU Wagner 
212.998.4712